Moonwalkbjrain said:

who cares about "most people"?---
Purple rain was the beginning-- he wouldnt stil be churning out the hits if it starte to end 20 years ago---

vainandy said:[quote]


no, i think you misunderstand what i meant by "larger then life".....madge still works the superstar look..so does bowie and janet...but they acted like humans...well, janet did until her boob blew up on national television....

hmmmm very intresting points and views.

I love this forum. The comments are always so interesting. I agree with those of you who are saying that Purple Rain is what took him to the top, and found that it wasn't a place he wanted to be.. that is as long as it meant he had to keep writing the same kind of music. I read an interview where he said, how easy it would have been to put out a dozen Purple Rains. Actually he told the interviewer (I think it was Rolling Stone) that he had recorded a "sequel" to Purple Rain that if he played it the guy would be all over it saying it would be a hit record. Prince said that it just isn't of interest to him.

Which is why I love him. He is a musician, not just a singer. And this is the reason why I think MJ has problems. He is dependent on finding the right producer, songwriter.. and with his crazy ass, I can't imagine it's easy to get near him with a good idea.

That's true.

this thread is Beauteous...while ya'll R doing the Prince/Michael comparisons
there's one blaring truth: Prince is a songwriting/musician/performer, Michael
sings what he can buy 2 sing & dances a bit...(not as much as he used 2)...
true that Michael & Prince have NEVER been N the same position, just the same industry...

Good thread!

I agree with many of the points put forward - as somebody suggested on a different thread, Prince was the zeitgeist in 1984. Just like MJ happened to be in exactly the right place, at exactly the right time, with the Motown Anniversary concert (which sent sales of 'Thriller' spiralling) it's almost as if Prince waited for a planetary alignment or something - he couldn't have picked a more perfect moment to release 'Purple Rain'. Everything was in synch. He had the Midas Touch - except, er, everything turned purple instead.

He'd already established a fan base and he knew exactly what was needed to propel him into superstardom - a kickass album, a hit film and an accompanying tour, with all the media hoopla that goes with it. The guy - when he wants to - sure knows how to market himself. (Surprise, surprise he's doing this again exactly 20 years after Purple Rain. He may not believe in the concept of time but - when the cash registers chime - he's listening. And that's not a criticism).

But as others have pointed out, he must have known that this level of success is usually a one-off. All artists will reach a commercial/critical peak - sometimes at the same time, if they're lucky. From there onwards, however, as far as sales go it's usually downwards. And I'm sure Prince was astute enough to know this. Rather than try to replicate the success of Purple Rain (which could have gone two ways - either cement his reputation as a superstar or lead to accusations of treading water) he's always taken the path of the 'artist'. Even if he does have the $$$'s in his eyes, sometimes. (I suppose Purple Rain was the artist's route with a few side-streets decked with cash along the way; whereas Batman - as much as I like it - was the money-maker's route, with a few artistic avenues along the way).

I think Prince knew that he probably had one shot to make it that big and went along with the experience. Been there, done that, moved on. And lucky us, the fans. He experienced levels of fame and fortune that few musicians will ever see; but it also gave him the 'power' and money to do what he liked. Which gave us ATWIAD, Parade, SOTT, Lovesexy, etc..

So I don't see Purple Rain as the beginning of the end - more 'Prince entertains the masses', then going back to what he cares about more than anything... the music.

Looking back I don't think it ruined him at all.
I mean really think about it. if it wasn't for the HUGE success of Purple Rain. Would Warner Brothers' had released SOTT or Lovesexy.??

I seriously doubt it.

theoriginalQueenB said:

not true...mj is a songwriter, musician and a performer...

lets not belitle one artist to make ourselves feel better about liking another, k?

no Purple Rain didn't destroy Prince. Prince made a calculated decision to follow up PR with ATWIAD bacause he wanted the reaction it got. Prince knew it would throw the mainstream off and that's exactly what he wanted. I don't know if most people realize it, but Prince originally wanted the film Purple Rain to be a cult type of movie not the national phoneonom it turned out to be. Prince has always considered himself not mainstream ready that's why you can listen to his music and not care when it was recorded. Prince flirts with the public, and then he shys away and it is all planned. Do you think TRC was meant for anything but diehards? Come on now. The difference between MJ and Prince is MJ is still eversearching for something to top Thriller. Prince went in other directions and hasn't since tried to duplicate PR. Purple Rain didn't ruin Prince that is preposterous on so many different levels. Prince is still going strong 20 years later. Purple Rain was a moment in time and Prince is over it! It's MJ that has spent the last 20 odd years making colossal videos way over budget trying to recapture something that will never happen again and that's fine with me, but the same doesn't apply to Prince. Hell, if you ask half the Prince fans I know, PR isn't even their favorite album! I know it isn't mine, now Parade that's a different story. To me, that album is a killer! I'm a real Prince die hard so I was with him well after the Purple Rain stopped falling.

sosgemini said:

Yes, MJ writes some songs. Yes he has been seen tinkering on the piano from time to time. What people are saying is this-give MJ a guitar and Prince a guitar and have them go at it. A musical showdown.Drums? Bass? Keyboard? MJ loses. Look at the sheer volume of material Prince has written compared to MJ. MJ loses. Hell, Prince (and he is one of the few) can even topple MJ when it comes to live performing. That's what people are saying; it's not to belittle MJ. It's to say they are apples and oranges-no comparison.

skywalker said:

but what is this thread discussing? celebrity....this isnt a thread about guitar playing...this isnt a thread about drums, bass and keyboard....

this is about career projectory and media attention...its a simple cute lil discussion that has absolutely nothing to do with talent...hence madge's name being brought into the discussion..

1984 called. it says it wants its "michael vs. prince" debate back, plus it would love it (as well as i would) if folks would please stick to the topic at hand.

kthx.

No way. If anything, Purple Rain made Prince what he is today. It's still his greatest masterpiece.....


























.....in my opinion.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

THANK U!

the only reason mjs name was even brought up in my original post is because thats where i got the idea from.! my thread has NOTHING to do with mj tryin to recapture the sucess of thriller. my thread has nothing 2 do with mj not having has much talent as p and so on...my thread has 2 do with whether or not u think purple rain destroyed prince! jeez!

orgjacko said:

then what do ya call the last couple tours prince has done? this past spring & summer, he milked the general public and he milked 'em good, and for what?

the supposed premise of 'im playin his hits "for the very last time". is that not milking one's past?

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Could be. Or, we could construe it as Prince putting his past behind him, while at the same time satisfying all the folks who constantly want a brotha to "just play the hits".

OdysseyMiles said:

its milking cause it wasnt the first time nor will it be the last time he claims to be "retiring" the hits..

OdysseyMiles said:

that too..."all i wanted was some ripple and 'purple rain'!!!"

Yeah, Prince may not be big on Greatest Hits projects, but he absolutely milks his past. The Purple Medley? The many "hits-for the-last-time" tours? "1999: The New Master"???? 'Nuff said.

And I admit I thought about getting that Michael boxed set, but no "Human Nature"? No "The Love You Save"? No "Can You Feel It"? That's criminal. Call me when you get it right.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

What a lovely combination!

Exactly, that's why Prince is supposedly back on top again. That promise brought a lot of the old fans back out that were afraid they would never get the chance to hear the old stuff live again. At the same time, the cost of the album included in the ticket sales put the album back on the charts. I'm wondering if it is still on the charts now that the tour is over.

jonylawson said:

Agreed! anyone who wants an artist to spew out
crap that sounds that same wihtout growing should enjoy dicks
like Nelly

Exactly. The first time he said this was when he changed his name to a symbol. He said he was very much divorced from "Prince" and vowed to never perform another "Prince" song live again. I'm not sure but I think it is in the interview in "Vibe" magazine around 1995. I saw him live on the "Jam Of The Year" tour in 1997 while his name was still the symbol and guess what....the majority of the songs performed were "Prince" songs.

I don't think it ruined him. He's looks great and happy

sosgemini said:

not belittle, only an observation...truly drawn from my point of view...
when/where has Michael ever Demonstrated his musicianship? if you're going by the liner notes consider that when U pay the bill it will say whatever U want!
take a look @ the time & the family; they signed contracts where their names appear but now we know it was Prince ALL the while! like i said, when U pay the bill...perhaps Michael never showed us his 'musicianship' was Bcuz Prince did...
...could it Be the Prince vs Michael thing Bgan long B4 the purple one stepped 2 the world stage & he knew "...without somebody writing 4 him(Mike) he wouldn't Be doing nothing..." this could Be Y Prince was adament 2 write/play/sing/perform his own music 2 preserve longevity...understand, this one sends prayers of healing, balance & growth 4 Michael & his concerns on a regular basis: only God can judge how a person impacts the world & what purpose a Life demonstrates!! this one seeks 2 find each as a child of God & Be honest about my perspective: U never know if a Spirit may grow from what is shared...i appreciate your view & response...k

theoriginalQueenB said:

1) did you not see danza's request to keep the conversation on topic?

2) take a listen to the Off The Wall Special Edition disc that has MJ, Janet and Randy Jackson doing all instruments and noises for the demo version of "Dont Stop Till You Get Enough"...it sounds awesome.....this was completely arranged and performed by the jackson clan....

but like dansa said, this is not a thread about mj....so keep it on topic.

btw: i didnt read that long arse no paragraph break mondo-huge sentence/paragraph at the end of your post...

its a bit too much for this late at night..

sosgemini said:

yeah...remember that the next time you try to do that with Prince and Wendy & Lisa.

Oy.